Chu Fan continued, "Now that we've decided to do this, there's no turning back. Furthermore, Yaocheng also needs to make sure that students are resettled after graduation. I hope that the Royal Government Affairs Office and Yaocheng officials can work together to establish an institution dedicated to serving the people. If prisoners feel they've been wronged, they can appeal through this institution and see justice served."
Chu Anping asked, "Your Majesty, please elaborate on the specific functions and operating model of this agency in detail, and ensure that the Royal Government Affairs Office and Yaocheng officials can efficiently complete your Majesty's tasks."
Chu Fan said, "I intend to establish an institution called a Law Firm in every prefecture and county. This institution will be jointly controlled by the Wei court and the royal family, and it will specialize in handling lawsuits involving civilians and prisoners."
Chu Anping and Chu Xiujie had never heard of the law firm Chu Fan mentioned, so they didn't know how to operate it. Fortunately, Chu Anping had just asked about it, and they also knew that His Majesty would continue to explain to them how the law firm needed to operate.
Chu Fan knew that Chu Anping and the others wouldn't know what he was talking about, so he continued to explain, "This law firm will be run by graduates from Shengwu University."
Speaking of this, Chu Fan thought of something else. He had not reminded the two people just now that Shengwu University must add law courses to provide future lawyers with the necessary knowledge and skills.
Chu Fan began to speak, "In addition to the basics of Confucianism, arithmetic, and military strategy, students at Shengwu University who wish to become lawyers must also study courses related to Wei law. The teachers will be officials from the Ministry of Personnel who will teach these students. This way, they will have a deep understanding and grasp of Wei's laws and regulations so that they can serve the people more fairly in the future."
Moreover, if these students perform extremely poorly in school exams, fail the legal knowledge exams at all, or are found to have misconduct in school, they will never be allowed to graduate, let alone become lawyers.
They will be tasked with upholding justice and the dignity of the law. If someone with limited legal knowledge or bad character becomes a lawyer, it will only bring more injustice and suffering to the people. It could even negatively impact the overall morale of the Wei State, so we must be vigilant against such a situation.
Although Chu Anping and Chu Xiujie still didn't quite understand what Chu Fan said, they carefully recorded what he said. After all, rice paper was now widely available, and feather pens were more convenient for recording. So when Chu Fan asked them to discuss things in the car, they brought rice paper and feather pens with them so that they could take detailed notes.
Chu Anping nodded respectfully and said, "Your Majesty, please inform me of all the other functions of the law firm so that I can make plans in the future."
Chu Fan nodded and continued to explain: "This agency will be composed of lawyers, inspectors, investigation officers, executive officers and clerks. In the future, when the prefectural government office in Zhou County is responsible for trying a case, if the prisoner has objections to the trial result, he can apply for the intervention of the law firm to ensure the fairness of the trial. The law firm will intervene in the trial process on behalf of the court and the royal family of Wei State, provide legal aid and guidance, and supervise the officials of the prefectural government office to ensure that they make judgments in accordance with the law.
Of course, lawyers only had the power to defend and appeal for civilians and prisoners; the power of judgment remained in the hands of the government. Lawyers could raise questions and make suggestions, but the final decision had to be made independently by the government in accordance with the law.
The Inspectorate was responsible for monitoring lawyers to ensure they accepted bribes or displayed favoritism, ensuring the fair enforcement of the law. If a lawyer was found to have violated the law, the case would be immediately reported to the Ministry of Personnel for appropriate action. Of course, if the county magistrate or city lord of a prefecture or county government failed to render a ruling in accordance with the law, the prosecutor also had the authority to report this information to the Ministry of Personnel, who would then investigate whether the prefecture or county government officials had violated the law.
The Investigation Department is responsible for collecting evidence related to the case, ensuring its legitimacy and validity, and preventing false and wrongful convictions. It is also responsible for investigating the true circumstances of citizens who come to the law firm for help, to prevent them from being deceived or exploited.
The bailiff is responsible for enforcing the ruling. This is usually done by the constables or city guards in the county. If the constables or city guards are unable to complete their tasks, the bailiff must personally intervene to ensure the law is enforced. They also have the responsibility to protect others in the law firm.
The clerk's job is to keep a detailed record of all case proceedings, evidence submission, and verdicts, ensuring the integrity and traceability of all information. This way, if a wrongful conviction occurs, it's clear which party is at fault.
Chu Anping and Chu Xiujie both nodded. They now understood why His Majesty had established such an institution. This was entirely to limit the power of local governments and protect the legitimate rights and interests of the people. Of course, these powers were only limited within the laws of Wei State, preventing them from continuing to act recklessly.
As for their ruling power over the prefectures and counties, it has no impact at all. As long as they handle cases according to the law, their status in the prefectures and counties will not be affected in any way. After all, the decision-making power to adjudicate cases is still in the hands of the local governments of these prefectures and counties. The emergence of law firms is only an auxiliary means to reduce the occurrence of unjust cases and to appeal for the people, and they will not participate in the final decision of the verdict.
Chu Xiujie asked, "What if there's already irrefutable evidence against a criminal, but they still insist on having a lawyer defend them in order to buy time? What should we do?"
Chu Fan pondered for a moment and said, "To ensure the fairness of the law, as long as there are prisoners who need defense, then the law firm needs to provide defense services. Because even if the evidence is solid, there may be cases of frame-up or forced confession. Therefore, we need to ensure that the right to defense is fully respected and exercised."
Chu Fan knew that even on Blue Star, forced confessions occurred in some countries, not to mention in this ancient society where the Internet was not well developed.
Chu Fan believed that there were still many aristocratic families or officials in the Wei State who relied on their own power to whitewash the original criminals or find scapegoats for the real criminals, and the law firm he founded could effectively curb such situations.
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